Front Diff Failure

[DefendersRock]

Hey,

Well, I drove to Abbotsford to see my family for Xmas and about 10km from my destination my front differential failed. Earlier I noticed the wheel would shake and was harder to turn at low speeds, but this went away quickly each time (it happened twice close to Abbotsford). So I got off the highway and heard a bunch of crunching and smashing and lost all drive.   If I put it in gear the front drive shaft spins, the rear driveshaft doesn't and the truck doesn't move. I was able to put on the diff lock and limp to my destination. 

Can I pull the front axles and remove the front drive shaft to get home?

Why wasn't my rear driveshaft spinning after the diff failure?   Is there a shear pin or something to protect the TC?

Merry Christmas :)

Derek

[Red90]

Yes you can remove both half shafts and the drive shaft and drive in rear wheel drive. It may be a half shaft, CV or diff that is broken.

The work is getting it apart so you may want to fix while apart.   There should be lots of used parts available around Abbotsford.

What year is the truck?

The center diff is a normal open diff. When the front breaks all power goes there and the rear does nothing.

[Red90]

Sorry. Just figured out who you are.  So a stock 300tdi. Most likely is the CV is broken or the halfshaft at the CV. Pull the diff fill plug and look inside while turning each wheel when jacked up. You should be able to see which side is broken. If it is the diff you should be able to see that as well.

[binch]

Yeah....sounds like a CV, or maybe a half shaft. :o

[headdamage]

You could drain the oil from the knuckles and the diff and see which one has bits of broken rover in it. It does sound like a CV to me.

[DefendersRock]

Thanks for the help guys! Makes sense it could be any of those 3. I'll check it out first thing tomorrow and keep you posted

[Red90]

The later style axle that you have is the weakest at the halfshaft/CV joint and so that is where they fail usually. Early axles are weakest at the diff end of the halfshaft and they normally fail at that spot.

You need to be careful driving after breaking a CV as you can lock up the steering. 

[DefendersRock]

Good to know!

Yep it was the CV joint that failed. I've been digging bits of bearing carrier out of the swivel housing for some time. One of the balls scored the swivel pin bearing housing pretty badly but there's no cracking. Since nothing runs on this surface I think I can get away without replacing it. 

I'm going to try to do CV joints and bearings on both sides while I'm at it. 

Cheers

[Red90]

If you are considering getting a stronger setup, this is the way to go. http://www.lucky8llc.com/Products.aspx?ProductID=7881